Down Under Down Under
⬅ previous ⬆intro next ➡Day 20 ~ 10 Jan - Melbourne
After yesterday's city tour, today we're going to be a bit more natural. We get an Uber down to the Bests', then Harriet drives us all to Cape Schanck, quite a long way south, where we're going to walk to and along the beach.
Ooh err., better be careful.
Off we go.
Some fine views from the path.
What's this?
Seems that the path we're on is being used for a race, and this is the 3km mark from the start point (which is approximately the car park we ourselves started from). On the other side it says 25, so you might think the out-and-back is going to be a bit more than a half-marathon distance. Ah, no. The Two Bays Trail Run doesn't quite work like that. You can start here, at Cape Schanck, and run 28km to Dromana and another 28km back again, or you can start at Dromana and just do the one 28k. The signs in the latter direction are for the one-way people not those who are on their return leg.
And here we are at the beach. Do we dare proceed?
I guess so.
No Amanda in this picture...
Because she's the one taking it.
While I'm looking for interesting things in the rocks.
On the way back, we see a number of whimsical signs like this. We didn't see them on the outward journey because presumably the people crazy enough to do a 56k ultra in the first place aren't going to be needing motivating witticisms until the second half.
Ok, i've prepared a modest walking-pace arrival. Does that count as a "move"?
See this lighthouse? There are tours.
And we're going on one.
"Adult 3"? Jo will join us but the others are too scared of heights (or just not interested in lighthouses). Timing is neat, just after lunch.
Looks a bit like a Victorian Tardis here, after climbing the stairs to the main light room.
Wayne, our guide, turns out to have friends in Chislehurst, and he's been there to visit them! He's also related to a convict who helped with the design and engineering of the Bruny Island lighthouse, so this is clearly in his blood.
That's the light up there.
And the machinery that operates it.
A simple mechanical solution to the problem of opeing the blinds at the right time to send out the desired flash pattern.
The builders obviously took pride in their work, and we can't pretend we don't like a good bit of mahogany and brass.
Jo is pointing at something that looks like it ought to have some deep function, and I'm sure Wayne told us what it was, but I completely forget. I think it's probably a rotating sight that has compass directions marked on it. That is, line up the two slots with a distant ship and that tells you its compass bearing from the lighthouse.
Can't see any ships though. There are a couple of tiny spots which I think might be kayakers, but even zooming in on the original it's hard to be absolutely certain.
Sign seen on the way out. Now they tell us! Well, really, I suppose if we'd been paying attention we would have seen it on the way in. But we have seen no snakes, so even the increased activity is clearly not a lot of activity.
Another half-hour drive takes us to the tip of the peninsula.
Getting ready for a quick dip in the sea. I'm not personally inclined, so I go for a short stroll instead.
"Penalty: Ten (10) Penalty Units" - if only I knew what a penalty unit was.
This is the estuary in question, and it's not obvious where the "open/close" button is to be found.
Squawk!
We're a bit late for the Twelve Days of Christmas now, but perhaps the local version of "a partridge in a pear tree" is "a rainbow lorikeet in a red flowering gum tree"
After the coast, it's back to the Bests' for dinner.
Decisions, decisions!
We are privileged to sit at the table.
Annabel and her partner Georgia are banished to the doghouse.
Then it's an Uber back to our hotel. We'll see them again tomorrow morning before we fly home.
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